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Monday, May 24, 2010

Creamy Onion and Blue Cheese Soup - Meatless Monday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The weather turned cool and wet on Saturday. Really wet. It was not a day for salads, so I pulled an untried soup recipe from my files and had a go at it. This turned out to be a nice soup, perfect for a rainy Saturday or Meatless Monday, but I must warn you, it is not for the feint of heart. To say it is strongly flavored is an understatement, but if you love French onion soup, beer and blue cheese I suspect the first spoonful will make you a rabid fan. The recipe is much like any other you may have for French onion soup, save for the addition of lots and lots of blue cheese. The cheese gives the soup its creamy texture. I suggest you add it in increment and taste as you go along. Start with four ounces and work you way up the suggested range of measure. Eight ounces would have been ideal for me, but Bob preferred it with a full twelve ounces. The soup also uses beer instead of wine to boost flavor. A bit of caution should be exercised here. To avoid bitterness, use something that is mellow. I have, for years now, used a specific non-alcoholic beer for cooking that gives flavor without bitterness. I'm not a teetotaler. The Belgian beer that I prefer is not available in this area, but I've found that O'Doul's Amber Ale has a hops finish and is a reasonable substitute. I also puree roughly half of the soup to give it substance. While this will never replace my favorite French onion soup, I can recommend this soup to any who love strong flavors are looking to try something a bit out of the ordinary. Here's the recipe.Creamy Onion and Blue Cheese Soup...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite adapted fro The Spoon Ingredients:6 (8-oz.) yellow onions, thinly sliced3 tablespoon butter or olive oil1 tablespoon olive oil1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon brown sugar2 tablespoons all-purpose flour1 teaspoon dried thyme1 bay leaf 1/2 teaspoon sage6 cups vegetable stock or water1 (12-oz.) bottle O'Doul's Amber Ale4 to 12 ounces blue cheese, crumbled

Directions:1) Heat olive oil and butter in a large pot or Dutch oven until butter melt and mixture sizzles. Add onions and stir to coat. Cover pan and cook at a medium-low temperature for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onions are tender and translucent. Uncover, raise heat to medium-high, and stir in salt and sugar. Cook, stirring only to prevent burning, until onions are a deep golden brown, about 30 to 45 minutes.2) Lower heat to medium, stir in flour to form a paste with onions. Cook, stirring constantly, until flour is lightly brown, about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of vegetable stock or water, stirring to blend stock with onion mixture. Add thyme, bay leaf and sage along with remain stock and beer to pot. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook slowly for 30 to 40 minutes. Place 1/3 to 1/2 of soup in a blender jar, Puree, being careful not to burn yourself. Return to pot. Add cheese in 4 ounce increments to taste. Add salt and pepper as required. Continue cooking over low heat for 30 minutes longer. Do not allow soup to boil once cheese has been added. Serve piping hot. Yield: 6 servings.

I made onion soup last week on our rainy Wednesday -- and it was perfect but this looks and sounds delicious and we both love blue cheese. It's getting to be summer on the prairie -- soups need to be cold! But it will be a good autumn soup.

I am a huge blue cheese fan. When my husband and I met he did not like it at all and now after ten years of marriage he's just as much into it as I am.I don't know if I would sacrifice my regular blue cheese into a soup but at Trader Joe's they sell it crumbled and I sometimes get that to toss on salades. I would love to try this hearty soup, I might just have to wait until fall though- it's already hot here.

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